Sunshine (2007)★★★★☆

This might be my absolute favorite Alex Garland work. He wrote it, and Danny Boyle (28 Days Later) directed it, and it’s very good.

That’s maybe not a surprise. I think Alex Garland has some interesting ideas floating around in his head, and with Danny Boyle in the director’s chair, they come to life really well.

I think what’s really impressive about this movie is how much you care about the characters in a short amount of time. Maybe it’s because there are a LOT of familiar faces (Cillian Murphy, Rose Byrne, Michelle Yeoh, Chris Evans, Benedict Wong, and as I mentioned yesterday, Hiroyuki Sanada), but I really connected with everyone pretty quickly.

(Maybe mild spoilers?) Actually, there’s a lot about this film that reminds me of Life. Not just the wild scary things happening in space, but the fact that there’s a possibility of affecting Earth, and how well the characters are built up in a short timespan. This movie is thankfully not QUITE as bleak as Life, though.

It’s definitely more science fiction thriller than horror, at least to start off, but I found it pretty affecting and interesting and would recommend it pretty broadly.